


A Vow On The Wind

by azureheavens



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Blue Lions Route, Blue Lions Spoilers, Drama, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Happy Ending, Hilclaude Week (Fire Emblem), Loyalty, Right after Ch 19, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-12
Updated: 2020-06-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:21:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24657505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/azureheavens/pseuds/azureheavens
Summary: The same promise, a different time. With the Alliance dissolved, Claude already knows where he plans to go now that the blood on the docks has dried. But will the others accept his absence, or will fortune's sweet scent lead him down a brighter path?
Relationships: Hilda Valentine Goneril/Claude von Riegan
Comments: 11
Kudos: 52
Collections: Hilclaude Week 2020





	A Vow On The Wind

**Author's Note:**

> Not a secret I can't keep  
> All of your good and your evil  
> Well, babe, you can leave it with me  
> (Safe, together)  
> If it's wrong or if it's right?  
> I am beside you, famine or fire  
> - _My Friend,_ Hayley Williams 
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CicAF4wE-Hw

“So, you’re just going to leave?” 

The door was already open, so Claude wasn’t surprised that he didn’t hear someone enter. The setting sun cast sharp rays of light across the carpet in his room, shining off the gilded decals on the tables, drapes, and bedposts. When the shadow from the doorway crossed over him, he already knew who to expect. He didn’t look up. “That’s the plan. Thanks for your help today, Hilda.” 

“You’re already packed too…” Hilda mused as she ambled around the room. Dusty red wallpaper, gold trim, multicolored pillows. A myriad of trinkets made the room look cultured, but most were there before Claude moved into the Riegan estate. He had stashed all his actual possessions with his wyvern, who rested before they would leave for good. 

Claude clicked his tongue. “You seem surprised I prepared.” He tightened the band on his last travel pack, patting it down. He had changed out of his bloody uniform a while ago, now wearing plain clothes warm enough to fly in. “I admit, I worried the Empire would clean out our defenses before the Kingdom showed up. Hoped Teach and Dimitri would have been faster in taking back Fhirdiad, but oh well.” 

Hilda didn’t face him, choosing instead to look out the window. “Oh, I was _more_ than worried. Still can’t believe you made me hold the bridge like that! It was like you wanted the Empire to get you.” 

“Oh, if only you had the same faith in yourself that I have in you.” Claude plopped onto the closest armchair and stretched. His wounds still ached from Gronder, but he was able to stay in one piece with this last battle. He could see Hilda’s bandages peeking from beneath her clothes, but it would take more than an army to kill _her._ “But it’s time to put all that behind us,” he continued. “With my word, the Alliance is no more, tucked in snug with the Kingdom lords. Funny that the descendent of the guy who split us all up would put it back together again. Sort of proves this centuries-long social experiment moot, doesn’t it?” 

Hilda didn't respond, but to be fair she never followed up on his hypotheticals. She picked up a porcelain deer figurine from the side table, turning it over in her hands. “Do you remember your promise at least?” She asked, pink eyes searching over her shoulder. Her tone was light, but she looked like she was trying to figure something out. 

Claude leaned back and brushed this thumb against his stubble, trying to decide if shaving would be worth the trouble. “Could it be… opening that restaurant together in southern Derdriu? I’m still up for it, but we may have to delay our plans.” 

“Not that,” she teased, smiling. “Pretty sure you were super drunk when we came up with that, anyway.” 

“Hey, not _all_ my drunk ideas are terrible. Sometimes it unlocks the genius lurking inside this dusty noggin.” He knocked on his skull to sell his point. 

Hilda giggled and set down the figurine. She turned to lean against the open window, light cascading over her shoulders. “You promised I could meet your family, Claude. Remember?” 

He raised his brow, pausing to gauge her intent. “How I could forget? I was stone cold sober when I did.” 

“Well, now I want to know when that would be. I mean, you’re leaving _now!_ No warning whatsoever!” Hilda rolled her head back and sighed sharply. Sunlight caught the edge of her jaw, framing a smile that sat tight on the corners of her mouth. “I thought you were just stepping down from your title, so forgive me for being a little shocked. What’s the point of a plan if you don’t share it with anyone?” 

Frowning, Claude sat forward in his chair. Her subtle accusation was warranted. While the roundtable agreed to rejoin the kingdom, only Judith knew he’d be leaving Fodlan. “It was one of many plans,” he said, “to avoid the worst-case scenario. I didn’t want you riding on a certain outcome in case it didn’t happen. Besides not dying, of course.” 

“That doesn’t answer my question," she said without judgment.

“True, and you’re still interested, so I won’t go back on my word. But you seem to think I’m going straight home? I hear Morfis is nice this time of year. Could use a chance to clear my head of this war business.” 

“Couldn’t we all?” Hilda said wistfully. “But I’m not asking where you plan on vacationing. Besides...” She trailed off, swaying with boredom on the sill. “When you _do_ go home, Goneril is just on the way.” 

“On the way to...?” 

Hilda said nothing, her eyes holding a secret. _You know where_ , they told him. 

Claude set his jaw, trying to guess how much she knew. He burned that image of her in his mind: Nonchalant, delicate, powerful. The sun burned behind her as soldiers cheered their victory over imperial rule, but her eyes were only on him. Claude stood with purpose, crossing the room to her. “You seem certain. I don’t think I ever told you where I call home.” 

Hilda smiled. “I was hoping you would tell me _eventually_. How long have we known each other? Somewhere along the way, I had to figure it out.” 

Claude smiled back. “Well, I’m intrigued by what your guess might be.” 

She shrugged. “First tell me if I’m right.” 

“How can I if you don't say?” 

She nibbled the inside of her mouth. Then she sighed, slipping back into her casual nature. “Well, whatever, we’re getting sidetracked. The ‘when’ doesn’t matter much to me, just that you keep your promise. Although...” It was then that Hilda lost her nerve, dropping eye contact. “If anything, me coming along could be a problem... Right?” 

Claude frowned again, weighing his response. He placed his hands on the windowsill beside her hips, leaning to her eye level. “Why do you say that?” 

She watched him cautiously, but one thing was certain: they both were talking about the same place. “Woman’s intuition,” she said, bobbing her shoulders. “I’m just asking: do you still want me to meet them? If you suddenly changed your mind or something, I understand.” 

Bringing Hilda with him home... She seemed to think it was still a question, but he wouldn’t have brought it up if he didn’t mean it. But the “when” wasn’t settled, especially with the war consuming his attention. Claude could sense the end of the conflict very soon, but only now could he get back to his own ambitions... Failure or success, what waited for him once he crossed back over those mountains?

“I haven’t changed my mind,” he said, holding her gaze. “But there's still... some business to take care of before that.” 

“How long would that take?” she asked.

“Can’t say. Things are still pretty complicated.”

“...I’d feel a little better if you _could_ say. Otherwise, I don’t know when I’d see you again." Hilda pursed her lips, but not from annoyance. "Promise you’ll at least write to me? Share all the glorious adventures you'll have while you’re off, free as a bird?” 

Claude teasingly raised a brow. “Oh? You sound like you might be jealous.” 

“Well, as fun as it is to save your skin over and _over_ again, I like you better when you’re not putting my life on the line." Casually, Hilda reached up to pick lint off his shirt. "Traveling around with you might be... fun.” Then she smoothed her hands over his shoulders, pressing wrinkles from his clothes. “Besides, you’d be lost without me.” 

Claude smiled, warmth lighting inside him. Her every touch added to that fire, casual as it was. “You do make for good company, and it would be _fantastic_ to hold a regular conversation after years of war councils." But he couldn't hold the smile forever. He sighed, hands gripping the windowsill. “You’re right, by the way. I am going home. Lots of unfinished business to catch up on, but my time in Fodlan is up. For now.” 

Hilda nodded, looking away. Then Claude noticed a smudge on Hilda’s cheek, a bit of dirt that must have escaped her notice. He raised his hand to her face and rubbed his thumb over the stain. “If you’re here,” he told her softly, “I’d have all the more reason to come running back.” 

A blush lighted Hilda’s cheek. She leaned into his touch, and he only saw perfection. Long lashes, painted lips, keen opalescent eyes. Her hands on his chest, the resolute gleam in her eye. The woman loyal only to herself seemed determined to stay by his side, famine or fire. Looking back now, he would have never expected such a thing. 

“Hilda,” he said, voice low and dry. Nerves twisted in his stomach, but he had no reason to worry. “Would you leave with me right now?” 

Bold now, Hilda’s eyes searched his face. She swallowed, standing taller to meet his eyes. “If you asked me.” 

Claude slipped his hand behind her neck, waiting, watching for any sign of retreat. She leaned in. Within moments their breath mixed, and Hilda’s lips felt supple and chapped beneath his. They kissed slowly, both not wanting to give away too much. Her fingers brushed against the side of his neck, pulling him closer. One hand propped on the windowsill, Claude slid his hand down to the small of her back and wrapped it around her waist. The pull was magnetic. With a breath he deepened the kiss, her soft mouth eagerly locking him in place. He thought of the scene they made for the people below the window, the former archduke cavorting with one of his generals, but he decided he didn’t care. Goosebumps prickled on his skin as Hilda threaded her fingers into his hair. Her other hand trailed down his arm that propped them up, rolling over tired muscles, stopping to tug at his fingers. He grasped her hand tight and reveled in her warmth against the billowing, saltwater wind. 

Breathless, he pulled away, and Hilda looked up at him with pink cheeks and growing certainty. She squeezed his hand, smiling brightly like the sunlight at her back. Whatever question she had yet to ask, she had her answer now. 

“Well then…” Claude whispered against her lips. “How soon can you leave?” 

**Author's Note:**

> For the Loyalty prompt of Hilclaude Week. Blue Lions recruit Hilda always fascinates me, especially when she never even mentions Claude in Ch 19 unless you bring him up. Guess I wanted to explore how deep her loyalty goes if you keep her with him. Thanks so much for reading 💖


End file.
